<p>I am making some research for colleges right now on collegeboard web site. In my case money is an issue and I have problem with understanding what does financial aid given by college really cover. For example, I am looking on Syracuse university and statisitcs show that financial aid in that university covers on average 96% of all expenses. But does it cover additional $13k for room and board expenses or tuition only?</p>
<p>First off…Syracuse might not meet 96% of YOUR need. That is an average of the need they meet. The school does not guarantee to meet the full need of all accepted students…and they don’t.</p>
<p>IF you get enough financial aid to cover tuition, room, board, fees and books, then YES your aid can be used to cover room and board costs. Any financial aid used to cover room/board costs would be taxable income for the student.</p>
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<p>“All expenses” means just that: all expenses. The stated “cost of attendance” (COA) for any university includes tuition and fees, room and board, books and supplies, and certain other expenses (including anticipated travel costs for the “average” student). See here from the Syracuse website: [Cost</a> of Attendance](<a href=“http://syr.edu/financialaid/costofattendance/index.html]Cost”>http://syr.edu/financialaid/costofattendance/index.html).</p>
<p>In the future, if you want to know the details of a school’s COA, go to the school website.</p>
<p>OK thanks. On collegeboard.org it is written on syracuse university profile: </p>
<p>$35,120 average financial aid package
96% of financial need met (average)
Tuition and fees: $39,004 in-state, $39,004 out-of-state</p>
<ul>
<li>13,692 for room and board.</li>
</ul>
<p>Could you exaplain to me what is this 96% about? My family income is under $30,000 so this is very serious issue for me. Will financial aid received from syracuse cover those room and board expenses as well?</p>
<p>It might, it might not. Again, on average 96% of financial need is met. That doesn’t mean what you will get would be average. Maybe it will, maybe it won’t. You might get aid to help cover room and board, you might not. It all depends on your grades and test scores and your EFC on FAFSA and what they offer you. Averages are just that - averages. Each individual student is different. An average of 2 people of 50% coverage could mean one is 100% and the other is 0%. The only way to know for sure what you would get is to apply and see. If Syracuse has a cost of attendance calculator - that could help give you a better idea - but again - this is not a guarantee until you apply.</p>
<p>Keep in mind that Syracuse is a Profile school that also requires the non-custodial profile if your parents are not married to each other. </p>
<p>Is the $30,000 just from income?
Does your family own a business?</p>
<p>Here is a list of schools that commit to meeting a student’s full financial need:</p>
<p>[Universities</a> That Claim to Meet Full Financial Need - US News and World Report](<a href=“http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2013/02/11/universities-that-claim-to-meet-full-financial-need]Universities”>http://www.usnews.com/education/best-colleges/paying-for-college/articles/2013/02/11/universities-that-claim-to-meet-full-financial-need)</p>
<p>Syracuse isn’t on the list. If you look at the [Princeton</a> Review](<a href=“http://www.princetonreview.com/schoolsearch.aspx]Princeton”>College Search | The Princeton Review) website, you’ll see that Syracuse has a financial aid rating of 89. The schools that meet full need generally have a rating of 99.</p>
<p>Schools, like Syracuse, that don’t guarantee to meet full need might meet 100% of Student A’s need, and 0% of Student B’s need. When you take the average of all those awards, that’s where you get the 96% that you saw. But, keep in mind, that this average includes only the awards for students who actually accepted their offers and decided to attend Syracuse. There may be many, many additional students who received offers of $0 who decided not to attend Syracuse (because they couldn’t afford to) - and their offers would not be included in that average.</p>
<p>To get full aid from a school that doesn’t meet full need, you must be one of that school’s strongest applicants. If your GPA and SAT/ACT score are just average for that school, you shouldn’t expect to get much in the way of aid. Focus on schools where your GPA and test scores are well above average for that school - that will increase your chances of getting a good award. But it’s still not guaranteed!</p>
<p>If you need full financial aid, then you should consider the schools that commit to meeting full financial need, like the schools listed above. You might also want to focus on schools that also agree not to include loans in the aid packages of low income students. Those schools are listed here:</p>
<p>[Project</a> on Student Debt: Financial Aid Pledges](<a href=“http://projectonstudentdebt.org/pc_institution.php]Project”>http://projectonstudentdebt.org/pc_institution.php)</p>
<p>These are the most competitive schools, though - so it’s not easy to get admitted! Keep in mind also that the school’s assessment of your actual need may not agree with your assessment. In other words, the school may decide your family can afford $5k/year, when you think your family can’t pay anything.</p>
<p>Your other best option is to consider schools that will award you a generous award based on your GPA and SAT/ACT score alone, without considering anything else. Those schools are listed here:</p>
<p><a href=“http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships.html[/url]”>http://talk.collegeconfidential.com/financial-aid-scholarships/1348012-automatic-full-tuition-full-ride-scholarships.html</a></p>
<p>Also remember, that is 96% of NEED as calculated by Syracuse. Not 96% of costs. To get to that figure they add up the financial need of all their enrolled students, and then compare that to how much aid they give. That aid is not all scholarships and grants. It can include loans and “self help” usually in the form of work-study. End even then they’re not meeting all need.</p>
<p>Unless you are at the very top of their admissions pool, I would expect that your financial aid package will include loans and work-study. Your first step should be to use the Net Price Calculator to get an estimate of what your aid might be. But understand that it can be inaccurate if there are unusual circumstances, or if parents are self employed. If your parents hold regular jobs, and have little assets, you might qualify for full aid - that doesn’t mean it will all be scholarships.</p>
<p>The answer to your question is, “Yes, it can, but does not have to and may not.” Here is the way it usually work:</p>
<p>Each college has what is called a Cost Of Attendance (COA) which is an official estimate that is submitted to a number of agencies including the federal government. The COA is comprised of the tuition and fees as well as other fixed costs plus average room, board, books, travel, and other expenses. Colleges differ as to how many COAs they submit and how they calculate them, but what they have down there is used as a maximum as to how much financial aid the federal goverment and often states who have aid programs will give. Your parents, for example, can borrow the full cost of your college through PLUS, which is the federal Parent Loan prgram, and that full cost is determined by that official COA. School usually have their own aid limits also tied to their own COAs. Most college will not permit awards of financial aid over the COA with few exceptions, and they cannot make exception when it comes to the federal or state monies. </p>
<p>Room and board are included in those COA figures, and for those colleges where most kids do live on campus freshman year, the numbers are pretty accurate, in that they use the average meal plan and room assignment available and freshmen are usually pretty limited in choice. There is almost always a commuter COA too,that is lower as it does not include the room and board but adds in expenses typical for a commuting student. In most cases, your financial aid packages will have these numbers as the maximum you can get from a school. Usually, any merit aid is used to reduce any financial aid one gets, since the need is then reduced and the scholarship is put towards that COA ceiling figure.</p>
<p>Though the PELL grant is a exception that the federal governent makes in terms of getting funds over the COA numbers, most schools have policies that integrate that into their aid calculations. PELL is fedreal money available up to $5600 for those who are at poverty level…</p>
<p>Reading statistics that colleges release is a tricky proposition. For instance, it can look pretty good to see that a school meets 96% of need. But that statement does not tell how that figure is calculated. does it meet the need of 96% of the students apply for aid and are qualified? How many of those students whose aid may be fully met are those with just a little bit of aid? How much of that aid is met by self help?</p>
<p>From SYracuse’s last CDS:</p>
<p>Number of students in line a who applied for need-based financial aid 2,591</p>
<p>Number of students in line b who were determined to have financial need 2,035</p>
<p>Number of students in line c who were awarded any financial aid 2,035</p>
<p>Number of students in line d who were awarded any needbased scholarship or grant aid 1,883</p>
<p>Number of students in line d whose need was fully met (exclude PLUS loans, unsubsidized loans, and private alternative loans)1,660</p>
<p>The average financial aid package of those in line d. Exclude any resources that were awarded to replace EFC (PLUS loans, unsubsidized loans, and private alternative loans)
$ 31,675</p>
<p>Average need-based scholarship and grant award of those in line e $ 22,700</p>
<p><a href=“https://oira.syr.edu/_private/pdf/CDS2010-2011/CDS_2010-2011H.pdf[/url]”>https://oira.syr.edu/_private/pdf/CDS2010-2011/CDS_2010-2011H.pdf</a></p>
<p>IF you look at the freshman students who applied for aid ~73% received some sort of financial aid. ~ 64% had their need fully met (this does not mean that each student had a 0 EFC. Remember there are probably students who only “needed” a subsidized loan. IF they got one, then all of their need was met).</p>
<p>The “average” package of $31,675 only covers ~ 57% of the cost of attendance.</p>
<p>If you are talking about “free” money 22,700 only covers ~41% of the cost of attendance.</p>
<p>that financial aid in that university covers on average 96% of all expenses.</p>
<p>No, that’s not what that means. And, it also doesn’t mean that it meets 96% of need.</p>
<p>It means that of the matriculating students, that 96% of THEIR need was met. So, that can mean that a whole bunch of low EFC/high need students were GAPPED big time and couldn’t afford to enroll, so their stats aren’t included. It can mean that mostly affluent students enrolled that had lowish need, and most of that need was met with a small student loan.</p>
<p>You can use NPC calculator to estimate your aid:</p>
<p><a href=“Net Price Calculator”>Net Price Calculator;
<p>Financial aid can cover room and board, but that part usually counts as taxable income for the student.</p>
<p>Finaid in the form of loans are not taxable, even if used for non qualified expenses.</p>